As used in this article:
(a) "Certificate of Rental Use and Occupancy" means the certificate issued by the Code Official which permits the use of a building for the rental unit or units set forth in same.
(b) "Code Official" means the officer or other designated authority charged with the administration and enforcement of the Building Code of this City, or his/her duly authorized agent.
(c) "Dwelling Unit" means a single unit providing complete, independent living facilities for one or more persons, including permanent provisions for living, sleeping, eating, cooking and sanitation.
(d) "Owner" means the owner or owners of a Rental Dwelling Unit.
(e) "Owner Occupied" means occupied by one or more of the individuals with whom title is vested by deed, will or intestate succession and shall also include one who is vested with the beneficial interest and possessory rights to the property by virtue of a trust instrument.
(f) "Lease" shall refer to an agreement, oral or written, wherein one grants to another use and possession of a rental unit for a period of more than seven days in exchange for some form of consideration, whether money, goods, services, or otherwise, and the verb form of "lease" shall mean the same as "rent" and "to rent" shall mean "to lease".
(g) "Property Manager" and the word "Manager" shall mean any natural person designated as an agent by the owner(s) for the purpose of managing a Rental Dwelling Unit.
(h) "Rental Dwelling Unit" and "Rental Unit" means any dwelling unit which is offered in whole or part for residential purposes and for which remuneration is received, but shall not be construed so as to include owner occupied dwellings wherein roomers or boarders are maintained in common living areas in accordance with other applicable codes and ordinances, nor shall it include hotels and motels, nor single family dwellings that have been occupied by their owners for at least two (2) years immediately prior to rental and for which neither the lease term nor the actual period of rental occupancy shall exceed two (2) years.
(i) "State Building Code" shall mean the State Building Code as defined by Part Seventeen of the Codified Ordinances of Charles Town and shall include the National Electrical Code.
(j) "Tenant" means an individual occupant of a Rental Dwelling Unit who has entered a lease agreement for occupancy of said unit for a period of more than seven (7) days or who has occupied such Unit for a period of more than seven (7) days in exchange for the giving of something of value to the owner.
(Passed 9-19-16.)